LANSING, March 22, 2002 – The numbers added up for math teacher Cliff Dubowski of Bloomfield Hills, as he matched the first five numbers in the March 19 Big Game drawing to win a $150,000 prize! The winning numbers for the March 19 drawing were: 17, 28, 31, 35, 37 and the Big Money Ball number was 7.

The lucky ticket was purchased at Shopping Centers Market Place, 39950 W. 14 Mile Road, in Commerce Township.

"I took a couple Big Game tickets to the store where I purchased them to see if any of them were winners," Dubowski said. "At first, I thought I had a $5 winner. Then the clerk said he couldn’t pay me my winnings, and I asked, ‘Why not?’ Then he told me the ticket was a $150,000 winner."

The lucky 55-year-old, a math teacher at Southfield High School, chose his winning number combination using family members’ birthdays. He said he plans to use his winnings to pay bills. There is no doubt he and his wife, Judy, and their sons, Lance, Kurt and Marc, will enjoy their newfound wealth!

"I couldn’t believe it when I found out I had won $150,000. I could hardly sleep at all last night!" Dubowski said upon claiming his prize at Lottery headquarters in Lansing.

The winner, who enjoys hunting and skiing in his free time, encouraged other Lottery players to keep playing and said, "Don’t give up!"

The Big Game is a multistate lottery game in Michigan, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Virginia. Wagers cost $1 each and tickets may be purchased at more than 7,000 Michigan Lottery retailers statewide. Big Game drawings are conducted every Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m. The next Big Game drawing is tonight (Friday, March 22), with an expected jackpot of $56 million. One $150,000 prize for the March 19 drawing remains unclaimed. The ticket was purchased on March 18 at D Brothers Party Store Inc., 39650 Jefferson Ave., in Harrison Township.

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